May Album

This month, we were visited by Matthew’s parents, who provided some fun Oma-and-Papa time at the park and the zoo.  They also jump-started the evolution that is taking place in our backyard.  Hooray for Oma and Papa!  

View Full Album

smith & bybee

Here are some photos from our adventures today at the Smith and Bybee Wetlands Natural Area.  The forecast finally called for a few dry hours today, so we hit the road for a small hike near the confluence of the Columbia and Willamette Rivers – still within the City limits.  We scoped out two very cool observation areas, a few rock sculptures to climb in, and we still managed not to scare away these two blue herons with all of our exuberance.  Can’t beat the free amusement and much needed fresh air!

 

        

cotton

Feeling like my head is full of cotton... my sinus infection took a turn for the worst when my ear drum ruptured last night.  Should take a few weeks to repair, according to the doctor.  Ugh!  and also, What?  I am having trouble hearing.

To top it off, the end of May seems more like March!  It won't stop raining here!  I want to post some photos of our backyard and all of the work we put into it, but we're not exactly outside enjoying it.  So onto more sewing. and blogging. and hopefully checking things off of lists.

post-op

I recently had some surgery (four days ago).  It was fairly minor, as far as surgeries go.  But anyway, coming from off my cloud of Vicodin, I'm realizing two things:

1. Family members don't think that any surgery is minor.  All procedural dates and times must be shared repeatedly.  Enough said.
2. If you're ever in the hospital for one thing, like having a biopsy or delivering a child, tough luck if you're suffering from a separate ailment...  

This last point deserves some explanation.  When I delivered Dean, the following day he scratched the cornea of my eye with his little baby fingernails.  My eye was in so much pain, and all the nurses in the maternity ward could do is give me some cream and an eye patch.  They had no idea what to do with me, because I needed care that had nothing to do with opstetrics or breastfeeding.  They didn't even know it was a scratched cornea.  Matthew and I joked that for Halloween (Dean was an October baby), I'd go as a pirate and he'd be my baby parrot.  It wasn't until a full 24-hours later when the pediatrician came to check on the baby, that I begged him to look at my eye and tell me what was wrong.  He recommended not using cream, which would make it worse, but just some saline drops.  Why in the world the maternity ward nurses couldn't figure that out, I am not sure.  We had even suggested early on that they ask people in the ER for help.  But I digress...


Fast forward to four days ago.  I went in for a biopsy, but unfortunately I was suffering from a simultaneous sinus infection.  I complained, because I'd had nothing to eat or drink, and combined with the sinus infection I was suffering a massive headache.  I have a bad history of migraines, and this one was coming on super strong.  And what did they give me for the pain?  Morphine.  Not what I normally take for headaches.  Is this a commentary on the total compartmentalization of the medical profession or the tendency to treat the symptom, not the cause? 

I recently attended a quick seminar on the "Three Pillars of Optimal Health", given by a doctor who practices naturopathic medicine.  He focuses mainly on elimination, reintroduction and stress reduction, and he also talked about a few basic principles:

• Find and treat causes of symptoms (not symptoms)
• Symptoms are the clues and not the problems to cover up.
• Avoid suppression
• Bodies are good at being healthy, if we stay out of their way.

I am thinking of diving into this a little further soon, as my sinus infection does not seem to want to go away - the morphine didn't exactly cure me.  Arrrrrr.....

it's curtains!

[updated with photos]

I finally got around to finishing my curtain!  Just in time to meet my self-imposed deadline.  I've come to realize two things while finishing this project: 

1.  Misunderestimation.  Yeah, I know that's not a real word.  I haven't been really honest with myself on how much I'm taking on in my life.   Besides my blog lists that I keep adding to, Matt and I are also trying to finish constructing our upstairs closet while re-designing and re-building one-third of our backyard.  My own lists never seem to take all of these other things into account.  We just ordered a new fence (he and his dad just ripped out the old), and we've dug out and built a new sand box, plus some fun climbing and play areas for the kids a la pea gravel.  This yard has been such a challenge for me, but I think it's finally come along for such a small and shady space.  It's miles away from what it was four years ago.  Not to mention our nearly-complete closet!

*****
our room with new curtains and matching pillow shams

2.  Blog bog.  Reading blogs about sewing isn't as gratifying as sewing, and it doesn't get me very far in my sewing projects.  I know, that kind of sounds rocket-science, but I thought I'd throw it out there.  I picked up a handful of good sewing blogs, which I love to look at!  But as soon as I stopped looking at them for a week, I finished my curtains.  Plus I started and finished these adorable pajama bottoms for Dean, featuring a sock-monkey print, and I started and finished a lovely curtain for Fiona's room.  Yippee!

*****
 Fiona's new curtains

enfj

For my Project Mgmt class, we each took the Myers-Briggs type indicator (MBTI) to determine which of the sixteen "types" we are.  Part of me really does not like the idea of a personality type, and I'm sure there are lots of ways to poke holes in the test, but apparently its a pretty baseline indicator that's been around a while.  In any case,  it was part of the intro to the "Communications and Teamwork" section of our course, and we took it as a way to understand where each of us is coming from - how we make decisions and react and process information, how we make things happen, etc.  Then we used our own "type" to understand how we can each "flex" to communicate with others - those who are on opposite ends of the spectrum.  The subject matter was pretty fascinating, and it really shined some light on areas where I've had trouble communicating both at work and with my family, and how simple changes in behavior can help me reach out to others.

According to Myers-Briggs, I am an "enfj":

Extraverted iNtuitive Feeling Judging ...


in plain English, it tells me that I'm an extrovert, big-picture thinking, heartstrong listmaker.  But I think we knew that.  I also found a longer explanation.

ENFJs are the benevolent 'pedagogues' of humanity. They have tremendous charisma by which many are drawn into their nurturant tutelage and/or grand schemes. Many ENFJs have tremendous power to manipulate others with their phenomenal interpersonal skills and unique salesmanship. But it's usually not meant as manipulation -- ENFJs generally believe in their dreams, and see themselves as helpers and enablers, which they usually are.

ENFJs are global learners. They see the big picture. The ENFJs focus is expansive. Some can juggle an amazing number of responsibilities or projects simultaneously. Many ENFJs have tremendous entrepreneurial ability. 

ENFJs are, by definition, Js, with whom we associate organization and decisiveness. ENFJs are organized in the arena of interpersonal affairs. Their offices may or may not be cluttered, but their conclusions (reached through feelings) about people and motives are drawn much more quickly and are more resilient than those of their NFP counterparts.

ENFJs know and appreciate people. Like most NFs, (and Feelers in general), they are apt to neglect themselves and their own needs for the needs of others. They have thinner psychological boundaries than most, and are at risk for being hurt or even abused by less sensitive people. ENFJs often take on more of the burdens of others than they can bear.

I'm taking this with a little grain of salt on some humble pie.

And now, a funny story:  Before we were married, and on a roadtrip to meet Matthew's grandparents in Woodward, Matthew's mom quizzed my personality with a few tests, including the Myers-Briggs - for fun, mainly, but I think she was also curious to see how I make decisions, how I communicate, how I balance Matt...  If you, gentle readers, knew my mother-in-law, you wouldn't bat an eye at this story.  She's harmless.  Still, it was a little intimidating and awkwardly humorous.  It still is.  But I took the test, as any potential future daughter-in-law would, and found out I'm an enfj.  I wasn't sure what to do with that information, since I didn't know much about MBTI.  Afterward, we all discussed what everyone else is (I only remember that Matt's an intj), and it didn't emotionally cripple me... 

So here I am, 10 years later, still an enfj.  But even more so - I'm a little more polar in the MBTI ranking... I guess these past 10 years were filled with life changes - marriage, job, two degrees, two children.  I'm apparently digging in, channeling my enfj-ness.  Apparently, simply the awareness of my enfj will help me communicate and understand people who are not so inclined.  I'll check back in with that.